Metallization of PET fibers in supercritical carbon dioxide and potential applications in the textile sector

The high dissolving power of supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) and its toxicological safety are used industrially in many technical areas. These include, above all, extraction processes such as the industrial decaffeination of coffee and the extraction of hops. Here, the range of applications was expanded for textile finishes. Specifically, the process engineering fundamentals were developed for the metallization of polyester fibers from scCO2 using organometallic compounds in order to impart electrical, antibacterial and catalytic properties to the modified textiles. The obtained results can be used for antistatic textiles (clean rooms, electrical shielding), for flexible heating elements (sportswear, wellness), textiles with antibacterial properties (wound dressings, outdoor textiles, sailcloth) or, in the long term, for new types of textiles with catalytic properties (e.g., for chemical industry). In addition, the basic combinability of properties was worked out using the example of dyeing/antibacterial finishing, which further expands the economic potential of this water-free high-pressure technology for the textile sector.